Laos risks lost decade unless China provides debt relief

Keith Barney is an associate professor at the Australia National University. Roland Rajah is lead economist at the Lowy Institute.

Laos is suffering an acute debt crisis with no apparent way out. This is a shocking reversal of the optimism of the pre-COVID-19 era, when economic growth averaged over 7% annually. While the benefits excluded much of the rural poor, this was still among the best growth records in the developing world. What went so wrong, so quickly?